Search Tips

Enter accurate serial number information

Because they are the data values that determine whether a registration will or will not be revealed in a PPRS search, debtor names and serial numbers are arguably the most important information to be entered accurately in a PPRS registration or as search criteria. Here are some tips to help you enter accurate serial number information:

1. Determine the collateral type and the appropriate serial number according the rules prescribed in the PPSA [General] Regulations. Read the Regulations and use them!

2. Recognize that PPSA Regulations define whether collateral should be described under the general description of collateral or as serial numbered goods. For example, consumer goods, equipment and inventory have different rules:

consumer goods that are serial numbered goods are entered by serial number

equipment that is serial numbered goods may be entered by serial number or under the general description of collateral

inventory that is serial numbered goods are entered under the general description of collateral

3. PPSA Regulations designate that only the following types of goods are “serial numbered goods” for purposes of registering and searching in the PPR:

motor vehicle

trailer

mobile home

aircraft

boat

outboard motor

4. By creating registrations that enter serial numbers only where necessary, you will have more time to concentrate on achieving greater accuracy for those (fewer) serial number records.

5. The serial numbers for automobiles and trucks may be evident – the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) that appears on the vehicle frame and on vehicle registration documents – but serial numbers for other collateral may not be evident. Be sure to use the correct values for tractors, trailers, mobile homes, boats, planes, etc. For example, in the New Brunswick PPSA General Regulation see section 25.

6. If you are still not sure which of two or more serial numbers to use for an item, you may include multiple serial number records in a registration and you may perform multiple searches using the alternative serial numbers.

7. When you enter a serial number in a registration or as search criteria, use only alphanumeric characters (letters and numbers). PPRS will not permit you to enter spaces, hyphens or other symbols.

8. When entering a serial number in a registration, you may use both upper case or lower case letters. Case will be ignored for purposes of close matching. For example, search criteria “abc123” will return the registered serial number “ABC123” as a close match and vice versa.

9. Copy and paste serial numbers from source documents when possible to avoid typing errors. If the source serial number contains non-alphanumeric characters such as spaces, hyphen or other symbols, you will be able to paste the serial number into the serial number field, but you must then remove the non-alphanumeric characters before you save the serial numbered collateral record or search criteria.

10. If you type a serial number into a registration, use the optional Rekey Serial Number field to help check that you entered the serial number correctly. PPRS will display an error message if the two serial numbers do not match.

11. When entering a long serial number, be most careful with the last 8 characters (last 6 for Yukon) of the serial number. The last 8 characters (last 6 for yukon) are the characters used to determine whether two serial numbers are a close match to one another. (All characters in the serial number are used to determine if two serial numbers are an exact match of one another.)

12. If you are entering a serial number that is longer than 25 characters, enter only the last 25 characters. Again, remember that it is the last 8 characters (last 6 for Yukon) which are most important.

Know when serial numbers are required

PPRS provides two ways for collateral to be described:

Serial numbered collateral: One or more rows listing goods by serial number. These values are searchable via the PPRS Serial Number Search (also known as "Serial Numbered Collateral Search") and via the Lien Check Service.

General description of collateral: A single, large text field permitting summary or detailed description of the collateral. This value is NOT searchable via the PPRS Serial Number Search.

Just because an item of collateral has a serial number does not mean that the collateral must be entered in a PPRS registration as serial numbered collateral.

The rules for how collateral should be entered into a PPRS registration are defined in the PPSA and the PPSA [General] Regulations. Important terms for understanding those rules -- such as "goods", "consumer goods", "equipment", "inventory" and other types of collateral -- are defined at the beginning of the PPSA.

Here are two of the important distinctions that you should learn about from the PPSA and PPSA [General] Regulations:

1. Not everything with a serial number is "serial numbered goods". Serial numbered goods, as defined in PPSA [General] Regulations, means "a motor vehicle, trailer, mobile home, aircraft, boat or an outboard motor for a boat" [New Brunswick PPSA General Regulation, section 2]. Though a computer, television, appliance, machine, document, or other collateral item may have a serial number, if it is not within the definition of "serial numbered goods", it is to be included within the general description of collateral, not within the list of serial numbered collateral.

2. The rules for describing serial numbered goods vary depending upon whether the goods are "consumer goods", "equipment" or "inventory". Generally speaking: "consumer goods" are to be listed under serial numbered collateral; "inventory" is to be described under general description of collateral; and, "equipment" might be described either way. Review the PPSA and PPSA [General] Regulations to learn the specific rules applicable for your situation.

Copy and paste into PPRS screens

Most PPRS screens permit you to copy and paste information into data fields rather than retyping the information.

We encourage you to use copy and paste where applicable in order to reduce errors caused by mistyping.

Restrictions for invalid characters

PPRS supports an extensive character set (ISO-8859-1) including accented characters used in French and other European languages.

PPRS does not support certain special characters used by Microsoft Office and some other applications, such as directional quotation marks, non-breaking spaces, and the elipsis (three dots). Pasting such characters into fields other than the General Collateral Description and Additional Information fields (see below) may result in an error message.

The Serial Number field does not permit characters other than alphabetic and numeric characters. The characters may be pasted into the field, but not saved. If you paste such characters, you must manually remove them from the Serial Number field before you register or search (PPRS will display an error message stating that you have entered invalid characters).

Special handling provided for General Collateral Description and Additional Information fields

In the General Collateral Description and Additional Information free-text fields, PPRS will automatically convert some invalid characters to valid equivalent characters. Special characters used by Microsoft Office and some other applications, such as directional quotation marks, non-breaking spaces, and the elipsis (three dots) will be automatically converted to equivalent characters such as standard quotation marks, spaces, and three dots. For more information see the PPRS Character Set page.

General Collateral Description and Additional Information fields may not retain special text formatting

The General Collateral Description and Additional Information fields are long, but simple, text fields. Carefully aligned columns of data from your source document may not look the same after being copied into the General Collateral Description or Additional Information field. In order to see what your copied text will look like in a completed registration, do the following:

Continue to the Submit Registration screen.

Before you submit the registration, click on the View Details button. This will present your draft registration details approximately the same way they will look in a Verification Statement or Search Result Report.

If you do not like the presentation, after returning to the Submit Registration screen, click the Revise Registration Details button in order to return the Draft Registrations Details screen and edit the pasted data.

Enter accurate debtor information

Because they are the data values that determine whether a registration will or will not be revealed in a PPRS search, debtor names and serial numbers are arguably the most important information to be entered accurately in a PPRS registration or search. Here are some tips to help you enter accurate debtor information:

Determine the type of debtor (individual or enterprise) and the correct name of the debtor according the rules proscribed in the PPSA [General] Regulations. Read the Regulations and use them!

For enterprise debtors, the Regulations will tell you things like the following:

How to determine whether the debtor should be entered as an individual or an enterprise. This is not always obvious. For example, look up the rules for how to enter the estate of a deceased or bankrupt person.

For different types of enterprise debtors -- corporations, estates, trade unions, trusts, trustees, bankrupts, partnerships, syndicates, and other enterprises -- how to enter the name(s) for that enterprise.

For some types of enterprise debtors, when you need to enter the names of representative persons as individual debtors.

For a corporation with names in multiple languages (e.g. English, French and bilingual), which forms of the names should be entered.

For a corporation, which words like "Limited", "Incorporated" and "Company" may be abbreviated, and if so, what valid alternative abbreviations may be used.

For individual debtors, the Regulations will tell you things like the following:

What documentation -- birth certificate, passport, citizenship document, etc. -- you should use to determine the name of the debtor. Answer: there are different documentation priorities depending upon whether the person was born in Canada and is a Canadian citizen, but a driver's license is typically NOT the best way to determine the name of the debtor for the purposes of the PPSA.

What to do for someone with has changed his or her name by marriage or otherwise.

What parts of the individual name -- first, middle, and last -- need to be entered. Answer: all of them that apply! If someone has a middle name, don't leave it out.

How to enter titles like "Mr", "Mrs", and "Dr". Answer: don't enter them at all.

How to enter designations like "Junior" or "Jr". Answer: it varies by jurisdiction. Atlantic Provinces do not include such designations as part of the name. Northwest Territories and Nunavut require a designation such as "Junior" or "Jr" that is included in source documentation to be entered as part of the First Name field.

For both enterprise and individual debtors, you may enter multiple debtor records in the same registration or perform multiple searches using different names. In other words, you are not limited to registering or searching only one form of the name; you may register or search for all that apply.